I just started a few weeks back on Vaniki and have been jumping back and forth between a druid and shaman. They're both pretty fun but seem pretty similar so far. I've mostly been root rotting solo and healing/buffing in groups. Does it stay that way, or do they become drastically different as you level up? Is one more desired in groups than the other? Big end game differences?
Druids can port you and groups around, better healers and nukers, can either root dot or snare kite dot, they have a lot of buffs, but also a weakness is they have no buff that is the best, good at solo. Shaman are kings of buffing and debuffing and can mana regen with the cani line, seem to be more group friendly, have some great slow / heal proc buffs right on the tank Have you tried a Ranger? Or Beastlord? I just started a Beastlord and I think he is going to replace my shaman.
Dru compliments casters better. SHM compliments melee better. Both contribute fine in regular groups, but you'll likely be in groups built out like that in raids. Probably doesn't change much for your play overall, but that is how it seems to work at the end of things, and mostly just affects who you socialize with during raid hours. Both can heal groups fine. SHM will be casting slow and Malo on every mob. Druids I don't think debuff much. Root isn't used much in groups. Snare is only used on mobs that flee. Ports are convenient. Groups rarely Evac anymore. The big change later is when cleric mercs are added. Healers are in short supply in the early game and buffs don't last very long. That is why you feel like you only heal and buff. In the later game, cleric mercs are common and buffs last hours. You will find that both classes do more aDPS and DPS, so in that way, both classes see their play potentially change significantly.
I agree with the above answers for general EQ guidance, but note that Vaniki has a fairly novel ruleset that may heavily impact the differences between shaman and druid. For example, the fact that druids can charm may make them immensely powerful in some situations, but which situations and which expansions that matters in are probably only known to Vaniki players. I'd recommend seeking guidance from other Vaniki players either on the TLP forum or in Vaniki chat.
I made the experience that the shaman is easier to play but the many buffs can be very annoying. There are just to many. Slow debuff and melee haste and atk buffs are the big strenghts of the shaman. The druid is a more complex class that does offer more playstyle possibilities and is the king of PL. Generally the shaman is better for raids, hard mobs (nameds; high con) and small exp groups (1-3 PC/mercs) while the druid is better for bigger exp groups (4-6 PC/mercs) that can kill mobs fast. However inside a melee DPS group the shaman will nearly always outperform the druid because of its uber melee aDPS buffs.
Good post, but I'll disagree with the bolded statement. If your druid isn't casting Blessing of Ro and Season's Wrath on pretty much every mob, poke them and tell them to get on the ball! Oh yeah, entrap also, if the mobs can run. There are other spell-based debuffs, but those three are fast-refresh AAs (well, 60s for Season's Wrath) and should be cast all the time. Also, Wrath of the Wild for a free 1.6M damage every 2 minutes. While technically not a debuff (like Season's Wrath), it lets the group do more damage against the mob, so close enough
